Cap-feeding machine.



No. 845,415. PATENTED FEB. 26, 1907. J. A. HICKS.

GAP FEEDING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED MAR 31 1905 2 SHEETB-SHEET 1.

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witnesses No. 845,415. PATENTED FEB. 26, 1907.

J. A. HICKS.

GAP FEEDING MACHINE.

APPLIUATION FILED MAR.31,1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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JOHN AUGUSTUS HICKS, OF SUMMIT, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGN OR TO JAMES M. HICKS,OF SUMMIT, NEW-JERSEY.

CAP-FEEDING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 26; 1907.

Application filed March 31, 1905- Sgial No. 253,069.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that LJoHN AUGUSTUS HICKS, a citizen of the United States,county of Union, State of New Jersey, residing at Summit, in said countyand State, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in (lap-Feeding Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to machines for automatically delivering metal capsfrom a mass to a capping-machine one at a time successively; and to thisend it consists in certain elements and combinations fully set out andclaimed at the end of the following specifica- 1 tion.

In order that persons skilled in the art to which my inventionappertains may understand, construct, and use my invention, I willproceed to describe it, referring to the accom- 2o panying drawings,forming part of this speciiication, in which Figure 1 is a sideelevation of my invention attached to and above my capping-machine,which capping machine is Iully illus- 2 5 trated and specined in anapplication filed in United States Patent Oflice March 31, 1905, SerialNo. 253,155. Fig. 2 is a top view of I the said capping-machine with theratchet mechanism attached for driving the feeding o mechanism locatedabove it. big. 3 is a top view of the hopper for holding a mass of capsand also the cone, carrier, and appliances for delivering one cap at atime to a chute which leads from said hopper to the capping-ma- 3 5chine.

hopper and chute, the cone, carrier, and other appliances being shown inside view.

Fig. 5 is a top view of a portion of the captransferring chute, in whichthe caps are turned to a uniform position bottom up previous to enteringthe portion of said transferring-chute which reverses their-position,turning them top up before reaching the capping-machine, delivering themat a definite 5 point in the pocket-Wheel. Figs. 8, 7, 6, respectively,are cross-sectional views, respectively, on lines X X, Y Y, Z Z, Fig. 5.

A is the hopper.

B is the cone carrier.

O is a chute attached to the bottom plate of hopperA and opening intoit.

1) is a vertical shaft which passes up through the center of thecone-carrier B and at its top ,enters a cross-brace E to center it,which Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the said 'crosibrace E is fastenedto the sides of hopper F is one part of a universal joint on the lowerend of shaft D, and F is the other half on the upper end of a shaft D. Fand F are a universal joint at the lower end of shaft D and is securedon the upper end of shaft 13*, which takes onto a pin on which ratchet Gis centered and revolves stepby step by mechanism which works thecapping-machine. The ratchet G is supported upon a bracket G, fastenedto the top plate E of the capping-machine. Thus the cone-carrier B ismoved circumferentially step by step by rods D D D in operativeconnection with ratchet G, operated 1n unison with mechanism whichoperates the capping-machine to which it is attached and which is toreceive the caps one by one in a pocket-wheel arranged therefor .at thebase of chute C and its lower connections. 7 5 Around the verticalperiphery of carriercone B, which is smaller than the inside of hopperA, are lugs B, which divide the space between cone B and hopper A intopockets B into which caps from hopper A drop and 8c are carried arounduntil they reach, one at a time, the opening A, above the chute 0, intowhich chute C they drop and roll down said chute to the part Cindiscriminately, the caps being turned part one way and part the other.The carrier-cone B has wings B which agitate the mass of caps in hopperA. Incline strips B are secured to the inner surface of hopper A,running circumterentially, starting at a point or points about the level9c with the top of lugs B and rise considerably above said level attheir extreme ends. The wings B on. the revolving carrier B move thecaps which may be above the pockets between the lugs B around and rollthem up the in- 9 5 cline strips B and over their extreme ends, so thatin case two caps have become cupped one inside the other as they dropover the 1 ends of the incline ieces B they are reversed and uncapped. YT e sides ofchute C from a mo definite point downward to the opening inchute 0?, are inclined outward graduallyi and the bottom plate to chuteis raised at the central portion from a definite pointin chute C (C fromwhere it joins the part'C has its sides vertical, as shown in Figs. 6,7, and 8, the incline sides be at C and downward to near the mouth ofchute C, so that caps rolling down chute C on reaching chute C areinclined against whichever side the weight of the heaviest portion ofthe cap inclines them, which is the top side, the raised center aidingthis operation, so that when the inclined caps reach about the mouth ofchute O the caps, are turned top down to pass on through chute C and, aschute C is curved over,the caps in passing through chute C are turned inposition from bottom up to top up and in condition to pass into-a pocketin pocket-wheel E in the capping-machine. to which the chute C isattached, and into Whichever pocket may be opposite the openingrin chuteC he operation of my invention is as follows A mass of caps is placed inhopper A, caps fall into pockets B of the cone-carrier, thecapping-machine is worked by its step-by-step mechanism, as shown in myapplication for capping-machine above referred to, and the rod D isturned, bringing one of the pockets B over the entrance to chute C, anda cap drops into the said chute and rolls down chute C to chute C and isthere turned upon its top side, no matter how the cap is faced inleaving the hopperAand pocket B As the cap leaves chute C lying upon itstop side, the

chute C being curved changes the lay of the cap to bottom side down andin condition to enter a'pocket-wheel E in the capping-machine and as itshould be to be placed over a vessel mouth. The same operation takesplace for every movement of the cone-carrier forward one pocket one stepat a time, controlled and timed by the ratchet mechanism which drivesthe cone-carri er B from the capping-machine and in unison with it Incase the caps look into each other, and thus are hindered from droppinginto the pockets B the wings B by the revolution of cone-carrier B,rollthe locked caps up the incline B and drop them over the ends of theinclines, and thus they become uncupped.

Having now fully. described my invention and the manner in which I haveembodied it, what I claim as new and as my invention,

and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a machine for delivering sealing-caps to a cappingmachine one at atime, the combination consisting of a circular hopper to hold a mass ofcaps; a circular carrier located within said hopper pivoted to revolvetherein centrally and provided with equally-spaced pockets on itsperiphery and embraced between the internal circumference of said hopperand said carrier; an opening in the base of said hopper and under apocket in the said carrier; a chute located beneath said opening toreceive caps as they drop into it through said opening; arectifying-chute connected therewith for facing the caps alike; areversing-chute as a continuation of said rectifyingchute to convey capsproperly faced to a capping-machine; step-by-step mechanism, consistingof a ratchet mechanism, and driving connections therefrom to the pivotalshaft for driving the said carrier, whereby caps are delivered from thesaid hopper one by one, to a capping-machine properly faced for the saidcapping-machine, substantially as specified. r

2. In an apparatus for holding a mass of caps and delivering one cap ata time to a rectifying-chute, the combination consistin of a circularhopper; a carrier centrally an pivotally located'in said hopper and ofsub stantially smaller inner diameter than the diameter of the saidhopper, division-pieces secured to-the outer diameter of the saidcarrier to form equal pockets bounded by the carrier, the insidediameter of the hopper and the said division-pieces; an opening in thebase of said hopper and beneath one of the said pockets in and above thesaid chute; upwardly-inclined pieces located on the inner surface of thesaid hopper; wings projecting from the outer surface of the carrier; apivotal shaft secured to the said carrier and journaled in the center ofthe base of said hopper and connected with the operating mechanism of acapping-machine, whereby the said carrier is operated circumferenti allystep by step, as and for the purposes hereinbefore specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses, this 30th day of March, 1905.

JOHN AUGUSTUS HICKS.

Witnesses:

GEORGE E. BENEDICT, JAMES M. HICKS.

